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Board approves expanded veteran property tax options; assessor estimates up to $32 million assessed-value impact
Summary
The Board adopted a local ordinance implementing parts of Public Act 24-46, expanding eligibility for property tax exemptions for 100% disabled veterans and related surviving spouses; assessor estimated the measure could remove $25–$32 million in assessed value, with a potential fiscal impact of about $945,600 at the current mill rate.
Milford — The Board of Aldermen unanimously adopted an ordinance (chapter 20.5, sections 20.5‑7.2 and 20.5‑14.2) on Oct. 6 giving the city several local options under state Public Act 24‑46 to expand property tax exemptions for certain veterans and surviving spouses.
The adopted ordinance: (1) extends eligibility to veterans determined by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs to be totally disabled based on individual unemployability (not just a 100% disability rating); (2) permits the city to include up to two acres of land with an exempt dwelling; (3) allows the city to cap the exemption at the city’s median assessed value for residential property (an optional limit); and (4) expands eligibility rules for certain surviving spouses and Gold Star spouses under specified effective dates.
Speakers at public comment included veterans, Gold Star family advocates and service‑organization representatives urging the board to act. Eugenia Penn, a surviving spouse who described her late husband’s 26 years of service, urged the board to remove an effective‑date limit that would otherwise exclude survivors who lost spouses before Oct. 1, 2024. “I think this is the right thing to do, to look back and really honor all qualified survivors,” Penn said during public comment.
The city’s tax assessor briefed the board on the financial implications. Using preliminary figures from the ongoing revaluation, the assessor estimated an upper‑bound assessed‑value change of about $32 million if the city adopts the ordinance without the median cap; applying the median‑cap option would reduce that estimate to roughly $25 million. At the current 2024 mill rate, the assessor said the larger scenario would translate to an estimated tax revenue reduction of about $945,600. The assessor also reported 59 properties on the existing 100% disabled list, 14 additional applicants identified as potentially eligible under the unemployability provision and that the new law requires annual recertification by claimants.
Board discussion focused on policy choices within the local options (land inclusion, median cap, retroactivity). The ordinance as adopted includes the municipal options discussed at the meeting; the assessor said some implementing details, such as final median values, will be set once the revaluation is complete. The ordinance also authorizes assessment‑year rules for surviving spouses for assessment years commencing on or after Oct. 1, 2025.
The board voted unanimously to adopt the ordinance.
